Streets were plowed this morning, but heavy winds blew snow back onto the pavement, making driving conditions treacherous across Nassau County. Above, Riverside Avenue in south Merrick.

Though temperatures plunged to bitter lows and much of the area was blanketed in 6 to 10 inches of snow last night and this morning, forcing widespread closings and making travel a gamble, there were no reports of storm-related losses of life and a relatively low number of power outages and calls to helplines, according to County Executive Ed Mangano this morning.Still, county officials said, roads were treacherous, and motorists were cautioned to take it easy when driving –– and to drive only when necessary.

County Department of Public Works crews "did a wonderful job keeping all the Nassau County roads passable throughout the weather event,” Mangano said. “They’re still out there working. Snow continues to fall, and obviously freezing cold temperatures. There [are] still issues on the roadways. Utilize extreme caution when taking to the roads.” The county opened Red Cross-operated emergency shelters in Massapequa Park, Glen Cove and Port Washington, but there were no overnight occupants.

Still, it was “better to be prepared and have them under operation,” Mangano said. No county roads closed during the storm. Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered the closure of the Long Island Expressway, however, from midnight to 8 a.m. today because of the heavy snow.

Mangano said at 8:40 a.m. that there were 17 power outages in Glen Cove, which he called “very few considering the magnitude of the storm.” He also said that the county had logged 406 calls to 911 and 100 calls to its non-emergency helpline. As of 9:45 a.m., there had been 34 storm-related accidents, most of them minor.